Djibouti releases photos of suspected bombers

The interior of the La Chaumiere restaurant is seen after the attack on Saturday night in Djibouti City.

Djibouti - Authorities in Djibouti said on Tuesday they have published photos of two suspected suicide bombers as part of investigations into a weekend bombing at a restaurant popular with Westerners.

The suspected attackers, a man and a woman, were initially identified as Somalis, although Djibouti's interior ministry said it was still trying to confirm where they were from.

Authorities also confirmed three people were killed, including the bombers and a Turkish national, and several foreigners wounded in Saturday's attack on La Chaumiere restaurant - including seven French nationals, four Germans, three Spanish and several locals.

“We are distributing the photographs in the hope of getting even more information on the two attackers, who included a woman and who both died,” Djibouti's Interior Minister Hassan Omar Mohamed said in the statement.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, although Djibouti's President Ismail Omar Guelleh was quoted as saying by the ADI news agency that the attack was a “violent reaction to our participation in the process to stabilise and secure the region”.

The Horn of Africa nation of Djibouti, a former French colony, is home to the United States' biggest base in Africa which is used for anti-terror operations in Yemen and Somalia as well as for other operations across Africa. France also maintains a military base in Djibouti.

Djibouti is also a key contributor of troops to the African Union force in Somalia, and the al-Qaeda-linked Shebab militants have already carried out attacks against Kenya and Uganda, who also have forces in Somalia.

Djibouti's port also serves as a key base for ships taking part in international anti-piracy operations off the Somali coast. - AFP